The posters discuss health benefits related to each habit. I was intrigued by the list, because it includes things that have long been promoted by religion (e.g. forgiveness, quieting your mind, gratitude). For example, forgiveness reduces stress and anxiety, lowers blood pressure, builds the immune system, improves heart health, and reduces the symptoms of depression. Here’s more from Mayo on forgiveness:

In 2015, we traveled as a family to Yaoundé, Cameroon so that I could participate in a workshop to analyze the tone systems of several languages from Central African Republic. While I was busy studying the intricacies of the Ngbugu language, Jessica worked on producing a 4-minute video about the workshop. Here is the result. Enjoy!

From 1993 to 1995, I (Ken) lived in the town of Bili, in the northwestern corner of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (at the time known as “Zaire”). The sojourn left an indelible mark on my life, which I remember with great fondness.

Recently, Heather Pubols traveled to Bili with Marie Yalemoto in order to visit the Mono language community. She did a splendid job of documenting the trip on her blog. It brought back a flood of memories as I viewed the postings. Below are links to the blog entries. If you only have time to read one, read “It Takes a Village.”

One of the basic building blocks in our marriage is spending quality time together. No TV, no distractions, just face-to-face undivided attention (usually with a cup of licorice-mint tea; it’s really quite good!). Quality time is Jessica’s main love language, and she is most happy if she gets lots of it. It’s hard to fit it into a busy schedule, but it is oh so important! Willard Harley, in his book His Needs, Her Needs, puts it this way:

If a husband seriously wants to meet his wife’s need to feel close to him, he will give the task sufficient time and attention. I tell male clients they should learn to set aside fifteen hours a week to give their wives undivided attention. Many men look at me as if they think I’m losing my mind, or they just laugh and say, “In other words, I need a thirty-six-hour day.” I don’t bat an eye, but simply ask them how much time they spent giving their wives undivided attention during their courting days. Any bachelor who fails to devote something close to fifteen hours a week to his girlfriend faces the strong likelihood of losing her. (Harley 2001: 65)